


Someone Like You

by standbygo



Series: November 2014 Song Challenge [4]
Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Drug Use, Drunk Sherlock, Fluff and Angst, M/M, kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-15
Updated: 2014-11-15
Packaged: 2018-02-25 10:19:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2618294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/standbygo/pseuds/standbygo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What Sherlock did after he left the wedding.</p><p>"Never mind, I'll find someone like you..."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Someone Like You

**Author's Note:**

> Please do not redistribute my fanfiction on other archives or sites without my express permission. Thank you.
> 
> Another in a series of pieces, built out of a challenge/cooperation between ResidentBunburyist and myself. Each piece begins with a piece of music, then I write a piece and RB draws a picture for it, or RB draws a picture and I write a piece for it. 
> 
> Song prompt of Adele's "Someone Like You". Because Adele.

I heard that you're settled down  
That you found a girl and you're married now.  
I heard that your dreams came true.  
Guess she gave you things I didn't give to you.

...Never mind, I'll find someone like you...

\- Adele, "Someone Like You"

 

 

Alex knew he wasn’t a great catch. He was realistic about himself, about his looks. Not that he’s hideous or anything, but he had just a plain kind of face, he was a bit short, had mud-coloured eyes, and hair that used to be mousey but now was half mouse and half gray rat. But his teeth were good, he earned a good living, and he could keep up his half of an intellectual conversation. Realistically, though, he knew he was a six, seven on a good day, four on a bad one.

Which is why he was completely gobsmacked when a man walked into the bar – a gorgeous man, a solid ten, wearing a morning suit no less – walked in, looked around, and made a beeline straight to Alex.

“May I sit with you?” said the beautiful man.

Alex’s voice failed. “Yes,” he squeaked. He cleared his throat, remembered that puberty was a good twenty five years ago, and tried again. “Yes, of course. Be my guest.”

The man kind of poured himself onto the stool next to him and peered at his glass. “What is that?” he said, pointing with one incredibly long finger.

“Beer. Uh.” Alex for the life of him couldn’t remember his favourite draught. He’d been coming to this bar for years, always ordered the same thing, he should offer to buy him one, but he couldn’t buy one if he couldn’t remember that he was drinking – “Smithwick’s! May I buy-”

“Beer. Don’t like beer. Not any more. Scotch.” The man waved, and the bartender appeared like magic and took his order.

Alex couldn’t take his eyes off the man’s hands. Or his suit. Or his cheekbones, or the shape of his lips, or his hair –

 _For Christ’s sake don’t fuck this up_ , he thought.

“I’m Alex,” he said, and was pleased that his voice came out more or less the way it was supposed to. “What’s your name?”

The man’s mouth curved up in a half smile, and he said, “Wwwwwwwwilliam.”

“William. Nice to meet you, William.”

William cocked an eye at him. “You believe me?”

“Of course – should I not?”

“Huh,” said the man, and took a large drink.

Alex realized that William was quite drunk. He thought for a moment, trying to decide if this bothered him. Finally he decided that he would be happy if he could snog a man this handsome, even if he was drunk, and try to get a phone number for a more sober occasion, with a possible shag in the future.

“You’re all dressed up, William. Special occasion?”

“Yes. Indeed. Happiest day. Nice weather for it. I don’t wear ties, but I did today. See?”

“You look smashing,” Alex said. _Oh God, was that too forward?_ he thought. Never mind, it was said, and there was something about William that was making Alex’s usual shyness drop away.

William stared at him, a bit owlishly.  “You’re an accountant.”

Alex blinked. “Uh, yes. Have we met before?”

“Nope,” said William, popping the P. “It’s obvious from your right ear.”

“My right – I don’t-”

William waved his hand as though shooing away a fly. “Doesn’t matter. Not important right now. What colour are your eyes? Too dark in here, can’t see them. Why is it so dark? Are they saving ecliric – eccentricity – El. Ec. Tri. Ci. Tee. Elect. Tricity. Should just pay the bills. Anyway. What colour?”

“Uh. Hazel, I guess.”

“Hm. Brown with blue tones. It’ll have to do.” William downed his drink, turned to Alex, and kissed him.

Alex didn’t move for a moment, shocked to his bones. William kissed as though there were magnets in each of their mouths, clunked together. He didn’t move his lips at all.

After a few seconds, he pulled away, looking puzzled. “Wasn’t that right?” he said.

“Um. You just kind of surprised me, that’s all.” Alex’s head was buzzing, full of confused bees. He ignored the bartender, who was looking completely scandalized that homely old Alex had finally pulled someone. “Can I just…” He leaned forward again, and kissed William again.

 _Such a beautiful man, and such an awful kisser_ , Alex thought. William didn’t seem to know what to do with his mouth, he seemed to be holding his breath, forgetting to breathe out of his nose. He kissed like someone who had only watched other people kiss. Alex was reminded of playing Spin the Bottle when he was twelve and kissing some girl who - 

_Holy God. He’s not just so drunk he can’t kiss. He really doesn’t know how._

Alex broke the kiss. “Hey, William, uh…”

“Do we have sex now?” William said.

Alex blinked.

“We could go to yours, but you live with your aunt, you’re hoping to inherit when she kicks off, don’t worry, you will. Could go to my place. I live alone. I don’t have a flatmate. Noooo flatmate at all. Just me. Two bedrooms, just me. Just don’t touch anything in the kitchen. Not safe.”

This was escalating rather out of control, and Alex suddenly felt responsible for William. “Look, William, I don’t think-”

“Why do you keep calling me William?”

“…You told me that was your name.”

“Oh. That. Go on.”

Alex tried to remember what he was going to say. “William, I think you’re really, really gorgeous. And you seem really smart, and I’d really like to get to know you better.” _That sounded good_ , thought Alex. “But it looks to me like you’ve had an awful lot to drink tonight-”

“LOTS to drink. Good deduction. I’ve been looking and looking for hours and hours and you were the first one who was close. Enough. Close enough. So. We can go to my place, or we can go into the alley. That’s always been a fantasy of yours, hasn’t it?”

Oh God. It was. Jesus. He was a mind reader or psychic or something. But…

“Let’s just talk for a little while, okay?”

“Okay.” William waved again and another scotch was poured. “D’you know any babies?”

“What?”

“Babies. Little humans. Do you know any.”

“Well, my sister’s youngest is four now…”

“Tell me this, then.” William turned to face Alex. “Am I more interesting than a baby?”

Alex couldn’t think of any answer at all.

“I mean, I’m brilliant, I can offer excitement, and murder, and chases, and, and, and bodies and all that stuff. But what can a baby do? They throw up a lot, don’t they?”

“Sometimes, yeah, but-”

“I hardly ever throw up. Just when I’m drunk.”

“Aren’t you drunk now?”

William held up a finger, and brought it towards his nose, missing it entirely. “Huh. Guess so. Better stop then.” He reached into his suit’s inner pocket and drew out a small baggie filled with a white powder.

Alex’s heart starting beating double time. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, William. Is that – you can’t just-” He glanced around but thank Christ the bartender was at the other end of the bar. “Put that away, okay? That’s – that’s kind of a turnoff for me, actually.”

William ignored him and poured about half the powder onto the bar, pushing it around with his finger. “Do you have any cash?” he said. “I don’t have any, spent it already. Like a pound note or something. No, those are coins now, aren’t they. Can’t do this with a coin. Can I borrow-”

“No, sorry, no cash.” No way he was enabling this.

William pouted. Straight out pouted like a four year old. “ _John_ always has cash.”

 _Who was John?_ Alex’s gaze was jumping around between the bartender, William, and the pile of cocaine. He suddenly noticed a bar cloth lying on the grate on the far side of the bar, and he got a crazy idea. He pulled a twenty pound note out of his wallet, and said, “Will this do?”

“Lovely,” William said with a huge smile. 

Alex kind of threw the note, and it fluttered to the floor on William’s other side. “Whoops. Sorry,” he said.

William pouted again, and went down to get the note. Fortunately he was very unsteady now, and he took so long to grab the bill that Alex had time to snatch the bar cloth, wipe away the powder on the counter, and slip the baggie into his own pocket.

William sat down heavily and stared at the surface of the bar. “Did I do it already?”

“Yes,” Alex said, letting out a gust of air. _My God, I’ve probably got fifty pounds worth of cocaine in my pocket_ , he thought.

“Huh. Mustn’t be very good. I can’t feel it at all. Can’t feel anything anymore. That’s good, isn’t it?”

William was now looking terribly sad, and Alex began to feel badly for this beautiful, lost man who didn’t know how to kiss.

“You okay, William?”

“It’s all over, now. I went away, and I was gone too long, and he moved on. He forgave me but he still gave her the ring. Best man, and lilac dresses, and Sydney Opera House, and I didn’t know, I didn’t know until 2:36 this afternoon. Too late. She’s got the ring already. He’s a man that keeps promises. Till death do them part.”

Alex could not understand what William was saying, but he knew heartbreak when he saw it. He tentatively put an arm around William’s shoulders. “Come on, mate. Is there a friend I can call for you?”

William shook his head slowly. “No friend. I had one, but he’s gone. Won’t dance with me again.”

“Let me put you in a cab, William. You’ll feel better in the morning.” Alex gently pulled William to his feet, and William obeyed without any resistance at all. Alex guided him to the door. “Where’s that flat you were talking about?”

“221 Baker Street. Won’t need the room upstairs anymore.”

There was a cab right outside the door of the bar, and Alex helped William into the back. He gave twice the fare to the cabbie, telling him to help William into his flat if he needed it.

“Bye, William,” he said softly. William seemed half asleep already. If Alex was a different kind of man, he would climb into the cab with him, take him home, take advantage. But Alex couldn’t do that and look at himself in the mirror. Wasn’t meant to be, he thought.

“You’re a good man, John,” William murmured.

Alex closed the door and watched the car pull away into the night.

 

_End_

 

 

 


End file.
